Spacer for conductors



Filed-May 17, 1961 April 23', 1963 1.. BLANCHET 3,087,009

SPACER FOR CONDUCTORS '7 Sheets-Sheet 1 April 23., 1903 L. BLANCHET 3,087,009

SPACER FOR CONDUCTORS Filed May 17, 1961 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 2

III 3 24 20 21 IV li 1 April 23, 1963 BLANCHET 3,087,009

SPACER FOR CONDUCTORS Filed May 17, 1961 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 April 23, 1963 L. BLANCHET 3,037,009

SPACER FOR CONDUCTORS Filed-May 17, 1961 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 A ril 23, 1963 L. BLANCHET SPACER FOR CONDUCTORS I Filed May 17, 1961 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 April 23, 1963 L. BLANCHET SPACER FOR CONDUCTORS 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 Filed May 17, 1961 United States Patent 3,087,009 SPACER FOR CONDUCTORS Lucien Blanchet, Colombes, France Filed May 17, 1961, Ser. No. 110,784 Claims priority, application France May 20, 1960 28 Claims. (Cl. 174135) It is current practice to hold rows of conductors which are positioned side by side between notched spacing bars which permit these conductors to be spaced, at a predetermined point along their length, a short distance from a wall, the lower spacer serving to attach the assembly to the wall and the upper spacer being attached to the lower by any suitable means.

These spacing bars, however, are subject to the disadvantage that the notches within which the neighboring conductors are to be seated are usually of uniform diameter and adapted to hold conductors which have the same diameter.

When such spacers must be used for rows or layers comprising conductors of different diameters, positioned side by side in a random arrangement, the spacer bars must be made to order, so as to be adapted to the specific problem posed in each case.

This adaptation consists in providing in the upper and lower spacing bars, symmetrical notches, the diameters of which are suited to the diflerent adjacent conductors which are to be held in place by means of said spacing bars.

The object of the present invention is to provide a new article of manufacture which consists of a conductorclamping spacer comprising a plurality of individually removable and adjustable members which may be slid or snapped onto at least one rail of the type used for terminal spacers, the assembly comprising said removable members being fixed on said rails by fastening means which may, as a matter of choice, be of the same type as the terminal clamps used with terminal spacers, or of a diiferent type known as flange clips and capable of being snapped, in the same manner as the individual elements which they are to hold in position, onto two symmetrical rails.

In a first embodiment of the invention, the individual members which hold the different conductors each comprise two parts which are slidable relative to each other in a direction parallel to the axis of the conductors, the lower parts forming supports which are slidable on said rail, and individual covers which constitute the upper parts, said parts being adapted to be snapped together in pairs in the position in which the conductors are to be held, and means for clamping the conductors comprising clamping shoes within said covers and means for moving them closer together and further apart,

Said individual members are, moreover, made of a plastic material which is sufficiently elastic to permit the movement of the set screw for each conductor to expand the front walls of said covers into contact with the adjacent covers, so that in this embodiment it is impossible to pull out a cover by sliding it parallel to the conductor which it holds in place, unless the clamping shoe of said conductor has first been loosened. This avoids any possibility that a conductor and its cover can be pulled out when traction is exerted on said conductor without first having intentionally loosened it.

In a second embodiment, the individual covers are not transversely slidable on removable sockets which cooperate with a rail, but comprise members which are exactly symmetrical with said sockets and are themselves slid or snapped onto another rail of the same type as the first, the two symmetrical rails being connected by at least two bolts or equivalent means passing through Patented Apr. 23, 1963 the flange clips which permit the said rails to be brought together to hold the individual conductors between the individual members positioned on opposite sides of said conductors.

The devices known as flange clips are in this embodiment, provided with an inner clearance permitting the two symmetrical rails on which the individual members are mounted to be displaced toward each other without substantially compressing the slightly elastic plastic material of which said flange clips are made, up to the moment at which the individual members positioned between said flange clips enclose and clamp said conductors.

In this embodiment the individual members which grip the different conductors may be separated from each other by intermediate members made of the same insulating material, which are adapted to permit the spacing between the different conductors to be modified, independent of those spacing conditions which are dependent on the diameter of said conductors.

The intermediate members may be made from solid blocks in different thicknesses or manufactured by superposing several thin elements.

These intercalary elements may have the same section as the elements serving as flange clips, so as to avoid their being subjected to compressive forces, which would be all the more damaging because they are so thin.

The intercalary elements may also have a section similar to that of the individual elements which grip the conductors, the thickness of these intercalary elements being nevertheless reduced in the direction in which the two symmetrical rails are spaced, so that the thin intercalary elements are not subjected to any substantial pressure.

The clearance thus provided at the level of these intercalary members also permits a strip of metallic foil material to be slid between the symmetrical intercalary elements. This strip serves to ground the metallic fluid conductors or the metallic sheaths of high frequency cables.

The flange clips are also preferably provided with a shallow groove in which a similar strip of foil is slidably received.

When the insulating material constituting the different individual members is metallized on its surface, the ground connection is made by merely connecting the metallic rails to ground, since these rails are in contact with said metallized surface.

It is also possible to employ flange clips as intercalary spacers so as to reduce the bowing of long rails and to multiply the number of set screws extending through such intercalary spacers.

The flange clips may also be of a mixed type so that three rails may be connected between them at the point of junction between two conductor holding spacers of different thicknesses, mounted in alignment with each other.

In a third embodiment of the invention, the flange clamps on the ends of the spacer are made in two parts which cooperate with double threaded pins so that a metallic grounding strip for the spacer may first be attached and the lower part of the spacer attached to a suitable support, the conductors then being gripped by the upper nuts, so that there is then no way of loosening the lower nuts without loosening the upper ones.

In two other embodiments all the upper parts of the members for gripping the conductors and of the flange clips are replaced by a single member which may either be attached by snapping it onto an upper rail or by a longitudinal dovetail attachment to a profiled member of different shape.

The present invention also relates to spacers which permit several superposed layers of conductors to be assembled together, which spacers may comprise H bars between the different layers. Certain of the conductor holders of neighboring layers may be snapped onto said H bars and the vertical alignment of the assembly of superposed conductor holders may be insured by any appropriate means.

In these spacers for several superposed layers, the conductor holders may be superposed by snapping conductor holders of two different types directly onto each other.

Other characteristics of the present invention will be better understood from a reading of the following description of seven embodiments of conductor holding spacers according to the present invention, these seven embodiments being given purely by way of example, and described in connection with the annexed drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of my conductor-holding spacer provided with end plates cooperating with gripping means of the terminal holding type, said spacer comprising a plurality of individual conductor holding members, one of which is shown, with its cover removed from the support;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section through an individual conductor-holding member taken along the line 11-11 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 3 is an axial cross-section taken along the line III-J11 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-section through the two parts constituting an individual conductor holder taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a support showing the lateral grooves in said supports through which a strip of metal foil can be passed so as to ground the metallic conductors or the metallic sheaths of certain electrical conductors;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the conductor-holding spacer comprising flange clips and intercalary members of different thicknesses;

FIG. 7 is an end view showing, in the embodiment of FIG. 6, the mounting of the supports with respect to flange clips of the usual type and individual symmetrical elements for holding the different conductors;

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of a conductorholding spacer comprising two-piece flange clips between which a nut and a grounding washer are positioned;

FIG. 9 is an elevational view showing the conductor holding spacer of FIG. 8, fully assembled;

FIG. 10 is a section through the same spacer taken along the line X-X of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a section through the same spacer at the level of a conductor holding member, taken along the line XIXI of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is an elevational view of a fourth embodiment of the spacer, comprising a cover which insures that the different conductors are held in individual sockets adapted to receive conductors of different diameters;

FIG. 13 is a section through the spacer of FIG. 12 taken along the line XIII-XIII of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a section similar to that of FIG. 13, but corresponding to a fifth embodiment of the spacer in which the cover for the assembly of FIG. 12 is made in a different waywith a dove-tailed joint between the metallic rail, against which the clamping screws press, and the elastic material in contact with the upper parts of the various conductors;

FIG. 15 is a transverse cross-section taken along the line XV-XV of FIG. 17 showing a sixth embodiment of the conductor-holding spacer with separation of the conductors into two superposed layers, and in which the individual middle members of these two layers cooperate with a connecting bar;

FIG. 16 is a transverse cross-section of a seventh embodiment of the conductor holding spacer according to the present invention, also provided with two layers of .A' superposed conductors, and in which the individual central elements of the two layers are snapped together;

FIG. 17 is a longitudinal view of the spacer of FIG. 15, partially in elevation, and partially in section along the line XVlI-XVH of said figure.

It will be seen from FIG. 1 that the spacer comprising removable members consists of a preferably metallic rail ll, onto which may be slipped the individual members consisting of supports 2 which cooperate with covers 3. The various interchangeable elements are slidably mounted on the flanges 4 of the rail 1, between insulating end plates 5 and held together by clamping means 6 of a conventional type, which may be employed as terminal clamps on terminal bars.

Only a single end plate 5, cooperating with a clamp 6, is shown on FIG. 1, but it is obvious that two like members would in practice be mounted in like manner to the other end of the assembly.

It should first be noted that the arrangement of the end plates 5 shown in FIG. 1 is given only as an example of an arrangement which permits the use of a standard type of metallic terminal clamps adapted to be mounted on terminal bars, but that the end plates are not necessarily provided with a central recess to receive the end clamps 6.

In particular, it is possible to provide members made of a molded insulating material, which may or may not be resilient. These members replace the two elements 5 and 6 and, if made of elastic material, are made thick enough to permit them to grip the individual elements of a spacer firmly, so that there is no possibility that such an element can come loose by unsnapping itself from the flanges 4 of the mounting rail 1.

Because of the size and rigidity of the conductors which may be mounted on spacers according to the present invention, while I have used a plastic material having some resilience, I have not attempted to make it possible to assemble the various supports by snapping them together, so as to avoid any possibility that they may unseasonably come unsnapped.

At the right of FIG. 1 it will be seen that the supports 2 are advantageously provided with grooves 7 in their outer parts. These grooves 7 permit the labelling of those conductors which are held by the corresponding individual member.

It will be seen that these supports 2 may also be provided with external grooves 8 which permit the various supports of the elements 2 to be connected together, especially when they are mounted by snapping them onto the flanges 4 of the mounting rail. Special rods may be provided for this purpose, and a seat for the ends of these rods may be provided in the end plates 5.

Such an arrangement provides greater rigidity for the spacer assembly when it has been put together and consequently greater safety.

The cover 3 is provided with inwardly projecting tongue-like strips below the slots 10. These tongue-like strips mate with grooves 11 in the members 2. Tongues 12 above the grooves 11 mate in like manner with the slots '10 in the covers 3.

It will be seen that, in order to facilitate the engagement of the covers 3 on the supports 2, the edges of the ends of the grooves 11 have been rounded off as shown at 14. After the covers have been placed in position, the rounded projecting parts 14 along the edges of the tongues 9, mate with the rounded edges 13. (See also FIG. 4.)

A snap fit arrangement is also provided to hold the covers stationary with respect to the supports 2. This arrangement comprises two vertical grooves 15 in the tongues 12 of the members 2, which mate with the vertical tongues 16 which project from the bottom of the grooves lltl.

It is easy to understand that these tongues 16 must be compressed to permit the passage of the covers 3 at the level of the part 17 of the tongues 12, until the tongues 16 enter the grooves 15, the covers being then fastened securely on the supports 2.

FIGS. 2 and 3, in particular, show how the inner shoe 18 may move up and down inside the members 3 so as to effectively grip conductors of different diameters resting in the semi-cylindrical hollow 19 in the supports 2.

The clamping screw 20, having a slotted head, has threads which mesh with those of a captive nut 21 seated in the insulating material of the cover 3. This screw can turn freely within the shoe 18 in which it is retained by an unthreaded shoulder 22.

When the screw 20 is turned clockwise, it is clear that the shoe 18 will be displaced with respect to the captive nut, that is to say, with respect to the cover 3, thus reducing the distance between the hollow 19 in the support and the hollow 23 in the shoe 18.

It should be noted that the threads on the screw 20 also pass at 24 through the resilient plastic insulating material of the support 3 so that frictional restraint on the threads of the screw 20 prevents complete removal thereof.

When the shoe 18 is being raised inside the cover 3, the screw is turned counterclockwise, the screw rising first through the captive nut 21 and thus cutting its own threads in the resilient material of the cover 3.

When a predetermined conductor is then clamped in place, the tapping 24 of the threaded part of the screw 20 thus already exists, but by reason of the resilience of the material of which the cover 3 is made, there is substantial resistance to any turning of the screw 20 after the conductor has been clamped in.

It should be noted that the clamping of the conductors between the shoe 18 and the hollow 19 in the support 2, also has a clamping eflect on the outer surfaces of the covers 3, such as 25 and 26, seen in FIG. 2.

From the moment at which the part 23 comes into contact with the conductor to be clamped, the particular shape of the shoe 18 tends to lift the upper corners 27 and 28 of these shoes 18, thus imparting a slight inclination from the vertical to the outer surfaces of these shoes and tending to press the outer parts 25 and 26 of each of the covers against the corresponding outer parts of the covers of the adjacent members.

It is, moreover, possible to increase this clamping effect even further by slightly inclining the inner surfaces 29 and 30 so that the descent of the shoe 18 tends to press the surfaces 25 and 26 against the corresponding faces of the covers of the adjacent members.

It will also be seen on FIGS. 2 and 3 that the supports 2 are provided with slots 31 and 32 which open at 33 into the semi-cylindrical hollow 19.

The exact function of the slots 31 and 32 is shown on FIG. 5.

FIG. 3 also shows that longitudinal grooves 34 for receiving labels extend along the two sides of the covers 3, so as to permit the diflerent covers, intended to be mounted on the different supports to be correspondingly marked.

FIG. 4 shows the label holding grooves 7 on the supports 2, the tongues 9 which cooperate with the grooves 11 and are shown with their rounded edges 14, the grooves 10 with their tongues 16 which snap into the grooves 15 in the tongues 12.

At the right of FIG. 4 are the tongues 9 which terminate in rounded edges 35 which facilitate the insertion of these tongues into the grooves 11.

FIG. 5 shows how a metallic strip 36 can be used to ground the metallic conductors or the metallic sheaths of electrical cables. This strip passes through the slots 31 and 32 which open at 33 into the hollow 19 in the supports 2. The sheet 36 is shown as horizontal on opposite sides of the element 2 in FIG. 5, whereas this strip in fact rises through a slot in one of the adjacent elements and a symmetrically positioned slot in the other adjacent element.

This grounding means is especially necessary in the case of metallic conductors for fluids, by reason of the insulating qualities of the material of which the individual holding members is made. The grounding connection may be made, for example, to the metallic mounting rail, near one end thereof, or to some other grounded metallic body which may or may not be connected to said rail.

Such grounding may be equally desirable in the case of the metallic sheaths of high frequency cables.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, it will be seen that the two symmetrical rails which support the individual clamping members, are designated by reference numerals 1a and 1b.

The drawing shows four conductors of different diameters requiring the use of individual holding members of difierent sizes, designated respectively by reference characters 37, 38, 39 and 40 for the lower elements and by 37a, 38a, 39a and 40a for the upper elements.

The flange clips at the ends are shown at 41 and 42, and it will be seen that the upper parts of the snap-over claws of said flange clips are, after clamping, at a level slightly higher than the claws of the upper individual elements 37a, 38a, 39a and 49a.

The same is true of the position of lower claws of the flange clips 41 and 42, with respect to the claws of the individual members 37, 38, 39 and 40.

This difference in level permits the two rails 1a and 1b to be brought toward each other until the different conductors 43, 44, 45, 46 are gripped firmly enough, without compressing the material of the flange clips 41 and 42.

Reference character 31a indicates the slot in the flange clips which is designed to admit a metallic grounding strip which may extend along the entire length of the spacer, as in the case of the strips passing through the slots 31 and 32 in the first embodiment of the spacer, which has already been described.

As has already been indicated, it is possible to make the individual members of an insulating material having a metallized surface in electrical contact with the rails 1a and 1b.

The drawing likewise shows two types of intercalary members which differ in thickness and are designated by reference numerals 47 and 48. These intercalary members are shown as being made in one piece and as having the same shape as the flange clips 41 and 42. A central slot similar to the slot 31a of the flange clip 41 is provided in these intercalary members to admit a metallic grounding strip.

The spacing between the rails 1a and 1b may be adjusted by turning the heads 49 of the clamping screws 50 which cooperate with the nuts 51 in a conventional manner.

It will be readily understood that the conductor-holding spacer may be assembled in the air on a stretch of parallel conductors without resting directly on any rigid support, but that it may also be mounted on a fixed base placed under the rail 1a, for example, the nuts 51 being then positioned above said base and the clamping of the various conductors being brought about at the same time as the immobilization of the spacer assembly on its base.

The end view of FIG. 7 shows the difierent tubular conductors 43, 44, 45 and 46, the screw 50 with its head 49, the two supports 1a and 1b, the nut 51, and the flange clip 41 with its slot 31a.

This end view also shows the respective positions of the bases of the individual members 37 and 37a which are shown by the broken lines at 52.

As shown in FIG. 7, the elements 37 and 37a have not yet been clamped tightly on the conductor 43, which fact explains the relatively wide space between the bases of the elements 37 and 37a.

Under these circumstances, even while the two rails 1a and 1b are being brought together, these rails can move 7 freely with-in the flange clips 41, thus approaching one or the other of the individual members 37 and 37a mounted on said rails.

At the moment of clamping the part 53 of the snapover claws of the individual member, 37a is compressed and descends to the same level as the part 54 of the flange clip 41.

In the same way, the part 55 of the element 37a, shown in broken lines, descends to substantially the level of the part 56 of the flange clip, with the same results with respect to the lower member 37 as just described in connection with the upper member.

The extent of compression between the two support members 1a and 1b, which is limited by the spacing between the bases 52, is less than the clearance allowed for the movement of these supports within the snap-over claws of the flange clips 41.

FIG. 7 also shows a flange clip 57 which cooperates with a screw 50a, which may be turned by means of its head 49a. This screw permits an assembly, to be made between the spacer of FIG. 6 and a spacer consisting of thicker members which cooperate with the support 1a and another similar support 58, a spacer which holds conductors of larger diameter, such as the one shown at 59 on FIG. 7.

FIGS. 8-11 show another embodiment of the conductor holding spacer, comprising a lower rail 1a and an upper rail 1b similar to those heretofore described, the lower parts of the individual means for holding the conductors of different diameter being designated by reference numerals 37, 38, 39 and 40, and preferably having metallized surfaces for grounding without recourse to a metal strip, while the upper parts are designated by reference numerals 37a, 38a, 39a and 40a.

It has been pointed out in the description of the preceding embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7 that the metallic rails may be used for grounding purposes.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 8-11 the lower rail 1a is in electrical contact through the lower nuts 51a with the double threaded pins 60, the enlarged central part 60a of which is hexagonal in section and serves to ground the spacer, the rail 11) being likewise connected to this hexagonal part, through the upper nuts 5112.

It will be understood that the grounding connection between the central part 60a of the pins 60 and a washer 6 1 which cooperates therewith, not only grounds the conductors held by the spacer through the lower rail 1a and a metallic strip connected between said conductors and said central parts 6%, but also grounds the upper rail 11) which is not in general in direct electrical contact with the ground for the conductors, since the clamping members 37a-40a are not necessarily metallized.

In the embodiment under consideration, the one-piece flange clips 41 and 42 have been replaced by flange clips consisting of two distinct parts carrying reference numerals 41a and 41b for the clip at one end of the spacer, and by 4211 and 42b for the clip at the other end, each of these parts being provided with a central projection 41d, 42d which prevents these parts from being crushed.

In order to clarify the explanation, the parts 42a and 42b are shown retracted from the rails 1a and 1b and the part 42b is shown turned at an angle to display its lower pant.

The conductors held between the aforesaid individual parts are designated by reference numerals 4346.

As shown on FIGS. 8-10 the lower parts 41a and 42a comprise a seat in the form of a longitudinal groove bounded by the rims 62, the height of which is slightly less than the thickness of the washers 61. These grooves serve to receive the metallic grounding strip.

As to the mid portions 66a of the pins 60, they are seated inside the members 41b and 42b in the cylindrical passages 63 shown on FIGS. 8 and 10.

The bores in elements 42a and 42b through which pins 8 ggbpass are designated by reference numerals 64a and The washers cooperating with the nuts 51a and 5111 are designated by the reference numerals 65a and 65b respectively.

The orifices in the rails 1a and 1b through which the rods of the pins 60 pass are designated by reference numerals 66a and 66b.

It should be noted that the diameter of the passages 63 is a little less than the maximum diameter of the central parts 66a of the pins 60 so that it is necessary to force the central parts of the pins into the passages 63.

As a consequence, when the nuts 51b on the upper side of rail 1b are tightened, this tightening does not result in rotation of the pins 60, since the latter are immobilized by their mid portions 60a in the passages 63.

The preliminary locking of the individual lower members 37-40 eflfectuated by means of lower screws 51a simultaneously grounds the rail 1a, while the final tightening of the nuts 51b safely completes the gripping and grounding of the different conductors.

In the fourth embodiment of my invention corresponding to FIGS. 12 and 13, it will be seen that the lower clamping members, which differ from each other to conform to the diameters of the conductors to be held, carry reference numerals 67-71 on FIG. 12.

The rail 1b of FIGS, 12 and 13 cooperates with a longitudinal member 72, of resilient material, which rests on the upper part of the assembly comprising conductors Seats 63a for immobilizing the central parts 60a of the pins 6% are provided, preferably of the resilient material 72, as in the embodiment of FIGS. 8-11.

The lower parts of the flange clips, which immobilize the elements 67-71, are designated by reference numerals 41c and 42c respectively.

The metallic grounding strip is shown at 78 on FIGS. 12 and 13.

Referring now to the embodiment shown on FIG. 14, it will be seen that the strip of flexible plastic material 72a, instead of snapping onto the rail 11), is mounted on a metallic bar 79, having a cooperating cross-section, by means of a tongue and groove joint.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 15 and 17, which carries conductors divided into two superposed layers, the lower rail 1a and the upper rail 1b cooperates with flange clips of the types 41a and 41b and with the individual clamping members of the types 37 and 37a.

On the other hand, the central clamping members 37a of the lower layer and 37 of the upper layer cooperate with a longitudinal bar 80 which extends over the entire length of the clamping members and stops just short of the ends of the spacer.

The flange clip members which cooperate with the two members 42a and 42b consist preferably of a single block 81 visible on FIG. 15, behind the intermediate members 37 and 37a, the member provided at the other end of the spacer being shown at 82 on FIG. 17.

The elements 81 and 82 are each provided with a bore which admits a pin 83. The grounding strips of this embodiment are designated by reference numbers 78a and 78b.

In order to avoid the possibility that the assembly of superposed clamps of the types 37--37a, 38--38a, etc. may bend, and in order to keep the longitudinal bar 80, which may be made of a plastic material or a light alloy such as Duraluminum, in alignment with the studs 83, a cooperation is provided between the flange clip members and the adjacent conductor clamps by means of bosses 84, on the flange clips which cooperate with recesses 84a, 85a, in the adjacent conductor clamps.

In like manner, each conductor clamp member is provided with projections 84b, 85b shown on FIG. 17 and cooperating with recesses 84a, 85a of the adjacent conductor clamp.

It will be readily understood that the end blocks 8-1 also comprise recesses which cooperate in like manner with bosses 84b and 85b on the last conductor clamps, this arrangement permitting the vertical alignment between the superposed clamping members to be maintained.

These elements do not show on FIG. 15.

It is clear that the grooved bar 80 may also be kept in alignment with the studs *83 by providing seats for the ends of this bar in the members 81 and 82, these seats being spaced from the bores for the pins thus avoiding the need for cooperation between the adjacent conductor lamps.

The hexagonal portion of the pins 83 is locked in the same manner as in the embodiments of FIGS. 8-11 by the periphery of a suitable seat 63a in the elements 81 and 82.

FIG. 17 shows the round washers 61, 65a, 65b, and the nuts 51a and 51b.

The pins 83 in this case, however, carry a supplemental nut 86 which cooperates with a washer 87 to ground the conductors in contact with the metallic strip 78b.

As seen on FIG. 17, the thickness of the different parts of the conductor clamps varies in accordance with the type of conductor which is to be held and the width of an individual member in the lower row in a direction longitudinal of the spacer, may be greater or less than that of a like member in the upper row.

It should be noted that the provision of the nuts 86 which cooperate with the washers 87 insures the clamping of the conductors of the lower layer, that of the conductors in the upper layer being then insured by the nuts 51b, the pin being held in each case at the level of its hexagonal part 83a.

In the embodiment of 'FIG. 16, the lower and upper members 37 and 37a of the conductor clamps cooperate with the rails 1a and 1b in the same way as in the other embodiments.

Additional vertical spacing may be secured by assembling members of the 37a type in the lower layer with conductor clamps of a special type 88 which snap longitudinally on to the members 37a.

The members. 88 have at their lower ends a section similar to that of the lower part of the bar 80-.

In this embodiment, the adjacent members are connected by means of bosses cooperating with recesses provided in contiguous members. Such bosses are shown at 84c and 85c on FIG. 16.

The flange clips 81a are a little shorter in height than the elements 81 and 82 of FIGS. and 17.

It will be appreciated that these embodiments may be modified as to detail, improved, or added to, and that certain structural elements may be replaced by their mechanical equivalents without thereby departing from the basic concept of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A conductor holding spacer assembly comprising in combination a supporting rail, a plurality of lower members carried on said rail which are individually adjustable along and removable from said rail, end members carried by said rail and holding said lower members in position between them on said rail, an upper member attached to and cooperating with at least one of said lower members to retain a conductor therebetween, one of said attached upper and lower members carrying an individually adjustable shoe, and means for moving said shoe toward and away from the other of said attached members.

2. A conductor holding spacer assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which said lower conductor holding members and end members are provided with registering recesses,

reinforcing rods being seated in said recesses.

3. A conductor holding spacer assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which there are a plurality of adjacent members within which a shoe is carried, each of said adjacent members being provided with parallel sides having opposed inner surfaces between which a shoe slides, each shoe being made of a resilient material with its conductor engaging surface defining a channel of slightly smaller diameter than the conductor to be held thereby so that the portions of said shoe lying on opposite sides of said channel are forced apart as said shoe is pressed against said conductor thus pressing the sides of each shoe carrying member outwardly against the sides of the adjacent shoe carrying members.

4. A conductor holding spacer assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which said means for moving each shoe is a screw passing through said cover member into said shoe.

5. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 4 in which said cover is made of a plastic material, a metallic nut is seated in said cover member and said screw comprises a threaded portion which extends through said nut and into the plastic material of said cover member above said nut.

6. A conductor holding spacer for attachment to a supporting rail, said spacer comprising a lower member provided With means for slidably engaging a rail and for positioning said spacer transversely of said rail, a cover member slidably attached to said lower member for movement in a direction transverse with respect to said rail, a shoe carried within one of said cover and lower members, and means for moving said shoe toward and away from the other of said cover and lower members to form therewith clamping means for holding a conductor.

7. A conductor holding spacer for attachment to a supporting rail, said spacer comprising a lower member provided with means for engaging a rail, a cover member attached to said lower member, a shoe carried within one of said cover and lower members, and means for moving said shoe toward and away from the other of said lower and cover members to form therewith clamping means for holding a conductor, said lower member being provided with slots dimensioned to pass a metallic grounding strip and extending from the interior to the exterior of said lower member.

8. A conductor holding spacer 'for attachment to a supporting rail, said spacer comprising a lower member provided with means for engaging a rail extending in a given direction relative thereto, a cover carried by said lower member, a shoe carried within said cover, and means for moving said shoe relative to said cover toward and away from said lower member to form therewith clamping means for holding a conductor, said cover being connected to said lower member by means permitting it to be attached to and detached from said lower member only by sliding movement in a direction transverse to both said given direction and the direction of movement of said shoe. 9. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 8 in which the upper surface of said lower member and the lower surface of said shoe are provided with conductor receiving channels extending in a direction transverse to said given direction.

10. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 8 in which said means connecting said cover to said lower member comprise in interfitting tongue and groove.

1 1. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 10 m Wl'llCh said tongue and groove are rounded at their ends to facilitate insertion of said tongue into said groove at one end and prevent its removal from the other.

12. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 11 in which cooperating snap fitting tongue and groove connect ons are provided in said cover and lower member which extend transversely of said first mentioned tongue and groove so as to lock said cover on said lower member in a conductor holding position.

13. A conductor holding spacer assembly comprising a pair of spacer rails, a plurality of individual conductor holders channeled to receive conductors of different sizes,

each comprising an upper member engaging said upper rail and a lower member engaging said lower rail, said individual conductor holders being individually removable and longitudinally slidable along said rails, but locked against such longitudinal movement by means of flange clips near the ends of said rails, said flange clips being centrally bored and comprising pins extending through said bores and slidably through said rails, the ends of said pins being threaded and carrying nuts the adjustment of which on said pins controls the spacing of said rails, said flange clips being of the one-piece type and comprising recesses within which said r-ails may be slid toward each other until said conductors are clamped between the upper and lower members of said individual conductor holders without substantially compressing the material of which said flange clips are composed.

14. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 13 comprising a plurality of thin intercalary members having the same transverse cross-section as said flange clips and inserted between the transverse sides of said individual conductor holders.

15. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 13 comprising a plurality of thin intercalary members inserted between the transverse sides of said individual conductor holders and having a transverse cross-section substantially the same as that of the individual conductor holders between which they are inserted but being slightly shorter in a direction parallel to said pins.

16. A conductor holding spacer assembly comprising in combination a lower supporting rail, a plurality of lower members carried on said rail which are individually adjustable along and removable from said rail, said lower members having recesses sized to receive conductors of different diameters, end means carried by said rail and holding said lower members in position between them on said rail, a single upper member of resilient plastic material extending for the full length of the spacer assembly and cooperating with said lower members, the recesses in said lower members being deeper than the radius of said conductors, an upper rail engaging said single upper member and parallel to said lower rail extending across the upper part of said spacer, and flange clips at the end of said spacer which are attached to said upper rail at their upper ends and said lower rail at their lower ends to immobilize said conductors.

17. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 16 in which said grooved metallic bar is a rail of the same type as the lower rail and snaps into a channel in said single upper member.

18. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 16 in which said grooved metallic bar is connected to said upper clamping member by means of a longitudinally extending tongue and groove joint.

19. A conductor holding spacer assembly for holding a plurality of superimposed rows of conductors, said spacer assembly comprising upper and lower supporting rails, a plurality of lower conductor holding members carried on said lower rail which are individually adjustable along and removable from said lower rail, said lower members having channels extending transversely with respect to said rail, the diameter of the channels in said lower members varying from member to member to receive conductors of different diameters, end members carried by said rail and holding said lower members in position between them on said rail, a plurality of upper holding members cooperating with said lower members to retain a conductor therebetween, said upper rail engaging the upper portions of said upper holding members and said end members, intermediate conductor holding members positioned between the superposed layers of conductors and similar in shape to said upper and lower holding members, and an elongated intermediate bar engaging said intermediate holding members.

20. A conductor holding spacer as claimed in claim 19 in which at least some of the adjacent end members and conductor holding member parts are provided with mating recesses and projections which maintain them in alignment.

21. A conductor holding spacer assembly as claimed in claim 19 in which said end members are pierced by pins which hold said upper and lower supporting rails together, said end members being divided into sections having substantially the same height as said conductor holding members.

22. A conductor holding spacer assembly adapted to hold conductors arranged in a plurality of superposed layers, said spacer assembly comprising a pair of spaced rails, a plurality of conductor holders channeled to receive conductors of different sizes each comprising an upper member engaging said upper rail and a lower member engaging said lower rail, said individual conductor holders being individually removable and longitudinally slidable along said rails but locked against said longitudinal movement by means of flange clips near the ends of said rails, a first set of intermediate members superimposed on and complementing said lower members, and a second set of intermediate members below and complementing said upper members, the members of said first and second sets being contoured to interlock with each other.

23. A conductor holding spacer assembly as claimed in claim 22 in which said flange clips comprise central parts substantially equal in height to the distance of the axial planes between the two superposed layers, the central parts of said end clips and the adjacent conductor holders being provided with mating recesses and projections by means of which said central parts and intermediate members are retained in alignment on said rails.

24. A conductor holding spacer assembly comprising a lower rail and a pair of upper rails, a plurality of individual conductor holders channeled to receive conductors of different sizes, each comprising an upper member engaging one of said upper rails and a lower member engaging said lower rail, said individual conductor holders being individually removable andlongitudinally slidable along said rails but locked against said longitudinal movement by means of flange clips near the ends of said lower rails, one of said flange clips and at least one conductor holder adjacent said at least one flange clip being taller than the others, one of said upper rails engaging one of said flange clips, the other of said upper rails engaging the other of said flange clips, and a short intermediate flange clip engaging both of said upper rails.

25. A conductor holding spacer for attachment to a supporting rail, said spacer comprising a lower member provided with snap attaching means for engaging a rail, a cover member attached to said lower member, a shoe carried within one of said cover and lower members, and means for moving said shoe toward and away from the other of said cover and lower members to form therewith clamping means for holding a conductor.

26. A conductor holding spacer assembly comprising a pair of spacer rails, a plurality of individual conductor holders channeled to receive conductors of different sizes, each comprising an upper member engaging said upper rail and a lower member engaging said lower rail, said individual conductor holders being individually removable and longitudinally slidable along said rails, end members at opposite ends of said assembly, said end members being centrally bored in a direction normal to that of said rails, pins extending through said bores and through said rails, fastener means on the ends of said pins for holding said rails against said end members, said end members being divided transversely of said pins into a plurality of sections, a polygonal flange having at least six sides defining corners at their junctions projecting radially from each pin intermediate its ends to form an abutment against which said fastener means urges one of said end member sections, and a circular recess in the other of said end member sections within which said flange is a force fit so that rotation of said pin in said 13 other end member section is resisted by friction between said flange corners and the walls of said recess.

27. A conductor-holding assembly as claimed in claim 26 in which said assembly comprises a metallic grounding strip which extends from one of said pins to the other between said upper and lower members, each end of said grounding strip being held against one of said end member sections by one of said flanges.

28. A conductor holding spacer assembly comprising a pair of spacer rails, a plurality of individual conductor holders channeled to receive conductors of different sizes, each comprising an upper member engaging said upper rail and a lower member engaging said lower rail, said individual conductor holders being individually removable and longitudinally slidable along said rails, end members at opposite ends of said assembly, said end members being centrally bored in a direction normal to that of said rails, pins extending through said bores and through said rails, fastener means on the ends of said pins for holding said rails against said end members, said end members being divided transversely of said pins into a plurality of sections, and a grounding strip connecting said pins, said grounding strip passing between the sections of each end member and between said upper and lower conductor holding members.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 595,827 Woolsey Dec. 21, 1897 2,417,260 Morehouse Mar. 11, 1947 2,425,935 Hayman Aug. 19, 1947 2,983,897 Blanchet May 9, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 13,044 Great Britain 1907 538,730 Great Britain Aug. 14, 1941 

6. A CONDUCTOR HOLDING SPACER FOR ATTACHMENT TO A SUPPORTING RAIL, SAID SPACER COMPRISING A LOWER MEMBER PROVIDED WITH MEANS FOR SLIDABLY ENGAGING A RAIL AND FOR POSITIONING SAID SPACER TRANSVERSELY OF SAID RAIL, A COVER MEMBER SLIDABLY ATTACHED TO SAID LOWER MEMBER FOR MOVEMENT IN A DIRECTION TRANSVERSE WITH RESPECT TO SAID RAIL, A SHOE CARRIED WITHIN ONE OF SAID COVER AND LOWER MEMBERS, AND MEANS FOR MOVING SAID SHOE TOWARD AND AWAY FROM THE OTHER OF SAID COVER AND LOWER MEM- 